Proportional Representation

With the election on Monday, I thought I would post a speech I made for Presentation Skills class this year. It advocates proportional representation. All the facts come from Fair Vote Canada.

How would you feel if you were told that your vote didn’t count in the last election?

For millions of Canadians like you and me, the reality is that this happens every election cycle. How? Through our antiquated vote counting system.

Currently in Canada, we have a “first past the post” voting system. What this means is whichever party has the most seats wins power. However, when we look at the number of votes that are actually cast for members of parliament to win these seats, it becomes very clear very quickly that the number is not a majority. This means your voice and my voice isn’t being heard. 

Consider the following: In the 2008 federal election, 940,000 voters spread across Canada supporting the Green Party didn’t elect anyone, while fewer Conservative voters elected 27 Conservative MPs in Alberta alone. In the Prairies, Conservatives received roughly twice the votes of the Liberals and NDP combined, but took seven times as many seats.  Nationally, the NDP attracted 1.1 million more votes than the Bloc, but the Bloc won 49 seats in Quebec while the NDP won 37 across Canada.

The truth is, the majority of votes cast elect no one. In the last election, a quarter-million Conservative voters in Toronto alone elected no one. In Canada, 7 million votes elected no one. 

The solution is to switch to the voting system already embraced by 80 countries in the world: proportional representation. The goal is to give every voter a voice and create a real representative democracy. The result will be to have representatives from every party, from every province, representing everyone in Canada equally.

There are three kinds of Proportional Representation systems, List, Mixed Member Proportional and Single Transferable. Now, each of these have their pros and cons, but the idea is, if you cast a vote for a Liberal candidate it counts as a vote the Liberal party. Therefore, if at the end of the night, if the Liberals get 25 per cent of the votes, they get 25 per cent of the seats.

Imagine everyone in the House of Commons working together to find solutions, compromising to find a middle ground, creating policy that reflects the needs of all Canadians. No one region will have more value than another- everyone from Victoria to St. John’s will have an equal say. Imagine knowing you are really making a difference.

So what can you do? It’s simple. First, if you haven't already, go vote on Monday! Even though you may not feel that it makes a difference, it does. The federal parties get their funding based on your votes, so if you want to make your party stronger, you need to vote.

If you want to make a real change, write to your local MP to tell them that you want to make your vote count and they need to support legislation that will being proportional representation to Canada. You can also go online for more information. There you can sign the pledge showing your support of proportional representation.

By working together to have all our votes count and have all of our voices heard we can change the way politics is practiced in Canada and never again have to worry if our vote counts.